Medication compliance in children with asthma.

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Pulmonology
• Clinical Pharmacy
• Behavioral Medicine

Background:

• Asthma management requires consistent adherence to prescribed therapies for optimal control.
• Assessing medication compliance in pediatric populations presents unique challenges.
• Understanding factors influencing adherence is crucial for improving treatment outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the compliance of children with asthma to their prescribed therapy.
• To validate a questionnaire for assessing asthma medication adherence.
• To identify factors associated with good or poor compliance in pediatric asthma patients.

Main Methods:

• A questionnaire was administered to 200 children with asthma to assess therapy compliance.
• Questionnaire validity was confirmed using objective measures: plasma theophylline levels (n=37) and metered dose aerosol canister weight changes (n=19).
• Statistical analysis explored relationships between compliance and demographic/knowledge-based factors.

Main Results:

• The average compliance rate among the 200 children with asthma was 67.9%.
• The questionnaire demonstrated good agreement with objective compliance measurements, indicating accurate recall of medication regimens.
• Good compliance was associated with parents' country of origin (Australia), asthma knowledge, and medication comprehension, but not perceived illness severity.

Conclusions:

• Pediatric asthma patients attending regular clinics exhibit suboptimal medication compliance.
• Validated questionnaires can reliably assess adherence in this population.
• Targeting knowledge and comprehension may improve asthma therapy adherence, even in seemingly motivated patients.